Fu, Xiao;
(2022)
The Influence of Musicality on Mandarin Tone Perception in Non-Tone Language Speakers: Behavioural and EEG Evidence.
Doctoral thesis (Ph.D), UCL (University College Lodon).
Preview |
Text
Fu_10161175_Thesis.pdf Download (29MB) | Preview |
Abstract
Learning a tone language is challenging for learners from a non-tone language background. Previous research has found that musicians may be at an advantage compared to non-musicians. However, more recent studies have suggested that this benefit may not come from musical training itself, but from other cognitive abilities that are enhanced by musical training. This thesis presents 3 studies that aim to further investigate the relationship between musical experience and perception of lexical tone. Study 1 used a battery of tests to investigate how musical experience, pitch discrimination, working memory and L1/L2 segmental perception influence Mandarin tone identification in monosyllables. Study 2 extended this to sentences, an important unit for conducting meaningful communication (Richards, 2006). There was no significant correlation between tone identification and working memory or L1/L2 segmental perception. However, musical training appeared to be linked to pitch discrimination, which in turn led to better tone identification, with different Mandarin tones affected differently. As expected, listeners found it much harder to identify tone accurately in sentences. In contrast to Study 1, musical experience had limited influence on tone identification in sentences. Study 3 used a combination of behavioural and EEG measures to investigate tone perception in non-tone language learners. As expected, learners outperformed non-learners in Mandarin tone detection. Interestingly, musical training, pitch discrimination, and pitch interval discrimination enhanced tone discrimination in non-learners but not learners. However, they did not affect P3b amplitudes in either learners or non-learners. This indicates that although pitch processing in music can be transferred to the language domain, with experience, learners process tone in the linguistic domain. This suggests that language and music are domain-specific. Overall, these results indicate that musical training can benefit tone identification in non-tone language speakers, particularly in the early stages of learning, but that it is not necessary or sufficient for tone perception.
| Type: | Thesis (Doctoral) |
|---|---|
| Qualification: | Ph.D |
| Title: | The Influence of Musicality on Mandarin Tone Perception in Non-Tone Language Speakers: Behavioural and EEG Evidence |
| Open access status: | An open access version is available from UCL Discovery |
| Language: | English |
| Additional information: | Copyright © The Author 2022. Original content in this thesis is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0) Licence (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/). Any third-party copyright material present remains the property of its respective owner(s) and is licensed under its existing terms. Access may initially be restricted at the author’s request. |
| UCL classification: | UCL UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Brain Sciences UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Brain Sciences > Div of Psychology and Lang Sciences |
| URI: | https://discovery-pp.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10161175 |
Archive Staff Only
 |
View Item |
